Christmas cooking with kids doesn’t have to be complicated. You can make simple and special Christmas snacks with red and green veggies or fruit and dips. Kids love to help in the kitchen. Being included in making traditional foods and yummy baked treats creates memories that last a lifetime. Besides the goodies, snacks are fun to make together too.
To make a Christmas veggie and dip snack or appetizer, check what you have in the fridge. Broccoli, celery, and snap peas are green. Even if they are fruits since they are the part of a plant with seeds, tomatoes are eaten like veggies. Peppers, cucumbers, and peas are actually called vegetable fruits. Little tomatoes can be eaten in one bite but are better cut in half so kids don’t choke. Include some Frosty noses, that is carrots, either slices or baby ones and some cauliflower which is white like snow. Little hands can wash the veggies and big hands can slice the pieces. Stirring is doable for kids as long as the bowl stays on the counter or table. They can mix up a dip they like and there is one Christmas snack.
A fruit and dip snack can be made with strawberries, raspberries, bananas, honeydew melon, kiwis, red and green grapes, apples, and pears, and Christmas oranges. This time, kids can slice the soft fruit like the bananas and grapes. Fruit yogurt makes a tasty dip. Another idea is to use any favorite and available fruits cut into pieces. Sprinkle over some shredded coconut to look like snow.
Having kids in the kitchen to be part of food preparation means adults have to be watchful but it’s so valuable. Kids develop a healthier and more realistic attitude to foods and to eating. Knowing how to prepare food is a life-skill. When they are involved, kids feel like they belong and they have something to contribute. This is food and nutrition for hearts. What will you do for some Christmas cooking with kids?